COMIC BOOK REVIEW - Iron Fist: Trial of the Seven Masters

By The Masked Medic

Back to Marvel! I have to admit, this summer I spent a lot of time watching Kung-fu movies since I started learning the art myself and I wondered which comics had heroes or villains that were kung-fu masters and lo and behold, Iron Fist popped into my head.

The novel starts with a desperate Danny Rand who has lost his powers and can no longer summon the Iron Fist. He attempts to enter many underground competitions in order to locate his lost power. One night a stranger finds him at a bar and claims there’s a mystical island where there is a tournament being held, telling Danny that if he fights there he may find what it means to be the Iron Fist once again. However, not all is as it seems and when he gets there he learns there’s a darker agenda at play.

I thought this was a good novel. The Danny Rand I saw on these pages is quite different to the one in the Marvel Netflix show, he’s cocky but also amusing and he doesn’t seem so uptight. The character development is also really positive as he goes through this journey in order to find out why he wants to be the Iron Fist once more.

The artwork I thought was quite good and I really liked the panels with the fights and the moves written on them. The covers were okay, but nothing compared to the actual novel, which is what I prefer. Overall, I thought this was a good place to start with this character.

Favourite Panel:

Comic book Danny Rand is hilarious and I’m here for it.

Favourite Character: Iron Fist. Obviously, he fights well, he jokes well and I really liked the costume!

Rating:

• Story Arc: ★★★★

• Character Development: ★★★

• Artwork: ★★★½

• Enjoyability: ★★★½

• Re-readability: ★★★½

Level: Intermediate